Multi-hop Collaborative Min-Max localization

Several applications of wireless sensor networks in general, and swarm robotic systems in particular, require that each device, sensor or robot, is able to estimate its position. Due to the hardware constraints, typical of these devices, the use of a Global Positioning System (GPS) is often not feasible. Alternatively, some deterministic localization techniques based on distance measurements to existing anchor nodes, that know their respective positions, have been developed. In the same vein, aiming an efficient solution for the localization problem, we propose a new deterministic localization method, called Multi-hop Collaborative Min-Max, wherein the unknown nodes also contribute with the localization process. The simplicity of the proposed method results in a low computational cost. The results in terms of mean positioning error prove the effectiveness of the proposed method in face of eventual constraints in the dissemination of the anchors data.